Bittersweet Symphony, This Life
by krissymcmahon
Summary: This is a sequel to A Supernatural Battle of Wills where bad things happen to good hunters. Rated M for possible adult content.


_"Make me a monster,_

 _Make me a beast,_

 _Prey on my weakness,_

 _Become my disease._

 _I've been lovesick and empty,_

 _Cold and I'm trembling,_

 _Still holding out,_

 _For my fairytale ending._

 _Nightmare,_

 _Falling as the bottom reaches up for me,_

 _Wake up on the ground."_

 _Monster - Ron Pope_

It had been 30 minutes of silence, 30 minutes of dead air and Stevie Hilliard was beyond worried when her latest attempt to reach her sister had gone unanswered. She hadn't wanted to go on this job to begin with, she'd had an almost sixth sense that it would go wrong, but Maria had insisted, reminding her of why they did the things they did, the people they saved. It was rare that Stevie would need such prodding, but there was something in the air that now blanketed her, reminding her that she simply should have trusted her instincts, should have said no, or at the very least should have made Maria wait until the brothers Winchester had arrived into town.

Maria had been adamant, as she often had a way of being, knowing that if they didn't go out tonight, on this full moon, they would have to wait weeks for what they had originally thought was a werewolf to appear again. Now, Stevie wasn't so sure they were right, and the longer Maria was on radio silence the larger her fear became until she was quite certain that any random stranger that would just so happen to pass her by would believe she was having a full on panic attack at the rapidness of her breathing. _Damn it, Maria,_ she thought, _where in the Hell are you?_

If she only knew.

Her phone buzzed and she nearly exhaled in relief until she noticed it was a text from Sam, not Maria, though she should have known that Maria would have used the two-way radio they'd relied on for this hunt. Sam and Dean were close, he'd said, and honestly, that was a slight bit of relief because if something had gone wrong, she could always use their help in getting out of any sticky hunting situation. Texting Sam back a quick acknowledgement, she returned her attention back to the woods and the path that Maria had walked down only 30 minutes ago. Or was it 40?

From the spot where she crouched she had a perfect view of the path entrance while her own body was shielded from view by an outcropping of rocks just tall enough to hide her if she were squatting. Her thighs had long since started burning, but she'd waited out worse and would wait longer if she had to, but Maria was supposed to message her as soon as she made it to the end of the trail. It was a walk they'd made earlier that day that had taken a mere quarter of an hour for them to reach the end to the clearing, where there several more paths to choose. But Maria was supposed to stay in the clearing and she was supposed to radio Stevie once she'd made it there, instead all Stevie had heard was dead air. Nothing. No Maria, no screams, no nothing. A quick glance at her phone and the time it displayed let her know that Maria had had more than enough time to walk the path and back again with ease, yet there was still no word.

Her phone buzzed once more, Sam again, but she didn't have time for Sam, not when Maria was unaccounted for. She also knew that she needed to be smart about it, at least as smart as any hunter in her situation would ever be. She dashed off a quick text to Sam and turned off her phone as she started down the path, not wanting light nor sound to be heard while she made her way toward the direction Maria had walked less than an hour ago. Her heart was pounding and if she were truthful with herself she'd admit that her hands were trembling somewhat. As much easier as hunting had become once Maria had joined her out on the road at the young age of 18, it'd brought a new sense of fear into her life. Her sister was her only remaining family, and even now that she'd met her honest to God soulmate in Sam Winchester, she knew life would never be right without Maria in it.

A twig broke under her foot and she silently cursed herself for getting lost in her fear and not paying attention to where she was walking, a rookie mistake if she'd ever made one. Staying still for a moment, she listened closely to the sounds of the night and hearing nothing above the chatter of insects, she moved forward again, this time still trying to be more careful as she stepped. Her eyes were searching feverishly as she slowly made her way down the path, but no signs Maria had ever walked down before were found, even the ground appeared to have still been settled and undisturbed by footprints.

As good as Maria was, she wasn't that good, so where in the Hell was she? Why did she venture off the path and where? Once Stevie had made it to the clearing, she searched for any signs of Maria and found absolutely nothing, no sign of Maria, no sign of the possible werewolf they were hunting, nothing. Taking in a deep breath, doing her best to stop the fear that was rising up inside her, she went against her better judgement and called out for her sister, no longer afraid she would possibly scare off their prey.

"Maria," she called out in a voice that was barely above a whisper, though as time stretched out and her nerves began to completely unravel her voice raised to that of a near yell. "Maria!" Stevie waited for a few minutes, then hearing nothing she started out at a full on run down the path back toward the car and her phone, calling out for her sister with every single breath. Reaching the end of the path she'd went down and bolting toward the car, she grabbed a heavy duty Mag Lite out of the glove box and turned on her phone, not waiting for it to power on before heading back out into the woods, down the path.

Calling out to her sister repeatedly, she only stopped once her phone was powered on and she pressed the speed dial, listening to see if she could hear anything. The now quiet was interrupted by the God awful sounds of Kayne West and Jamie Foxx singing Gold Digger, a song that Stevie loathed beyond reason and the sole purpose of it being the ring tone on Maria's phone to alert her of a call from her sister. Swallowing a cry of anguish, Stevie followed the sounds of the song, her knees buckling as she almost tripped over her sister, her body covered in pine straw and other leaves. Quickly brushing the debris off of Maria's face, Stevie lost all control as the light shown on her blue lips and white pallor. Shaking her sister bringing forth no signs of life and no breath coming from her lungs, she began to start CPR on the lifeless form with no results, though it did not slow her resolve and she continued until she practically collapsed beside her sister, tears running down either side of her face. She couldn't move, she could barely breathe and when she heard the voices of Sam and Dean calling out to her, she barely had voice left to answer.

Having traced her phone, Sam had directed Dean on where to find the girls and Dean had spared no time in getting there after Stevie's last text had said that Maria was missing. They hadn't been too far away, the girls should have waited he'd lamented, but both he and Sam knew they waited for no one. Once they'd arrived at the car, they'd been able to follow the path and diverged off once they'd saw the light coming from the powerful flashlight. While Sam immediately dropped to the ground to pull Stevie into his arms, Dean stopped dead in his tracks, his heart breaking on many different levels as he looked at the young hunter lying prone on the ground. "Fuck," was all he managed to whisper.


End file.
